Boys cruise to win over Hollister squad missing star
By Josh Staloch
Hollister – For awhile, it looked like the Hollister boys’ basketball team might survive Thursday’s game with Gilroy without all-everything forward Kyle Sharp.
Then the second minute came.
Looking to rebound from a loss to Live Oak – and without the services of the injured Sharp, who averages nearly 30 points a game – the Haybalers jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead.
But the Mustangs kept pace with the ‘Balers in the game’s early going and then took control of things in the second half to get the 61-50 win and improve to 2-4 in TCAL play and 13-11 overall.
Senior co-captain Calvin Kretz led Gilroy with 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting, while junior post Ryan Chisolm added 11.
“They’re obviously a much different team without Kyle (Sharp),” Mustangs head coach Bud Ogden said. “They gave us all we could handle without him. They played with great intensity and they really had us screwed up with their defense in the first half.”
The Haybalers (18-5/3-3) started hot with a three-pointer from Eric Davis and then a score underneath by Ian Whiteley. Chisolm broke the ice for the Mustangs with a nice shot from the outside and the back-and-forth game began.
Hollister was making the most of good looks at the basket from the likes of Davis and Vince Bautista in the first quarter, but Gilroy was able to stay right with them – despite some intense defensive pressure – thanks to its hard work on the boards.
The Mustangs, who lost to the ‘Balers 49-38 in the league opener Jan. 13, got multiple second chances early as their post players controlled the offensive glass.
Hollister was up 12-10 at the end of the first quarter, but a turnover to start the second resulted in a score for Gilroy’s Steven Good at the other end. The Mustangs took the lead for the first time when Jeremy Teschera cashed in on two free throws.
But the ‘Balers reclaimed the lead at the end of the half when Kevin Jones hit a pair of shots from the charity stripe with about 20 seconds left, giving Hollister the 24-22 edge.
The second half belonged to the Mustangs, though. The duo of Chisolm and Kretz were able to pick apart the Hollister defense that had given the Mustangs so much trouble in the first half, and by the midway point of the final quarter, Gilroy had built a 50-43 lead.
Hollister battled hard in the second half, which was highlighted by the play of Jones and Colin Parker – both of whom continue to get valuable minutes with Sharp out – but couldn’t close the gap down the stretch.
The Mustangs won their second straight league game after starting out 0-4.
“I felt that the effort was definitely there and I thought the kids did a nice job putting pressure on the basketball,” said Hollister head coach David Kaplansky. “I really thought we improved from Tuesday’s game.”
As for Gilroy, the Mustangs need one more win to clinch a .500 record and a berth in the CCS playoffs. Next up is a home game against Palma Wednesday at 7pm.
